


Tail End

by thesirensong



Series: Siren Anxceit [2]
Category: Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Familial Moxiety - Freeform, Implied past torture, M/M, Sympathetic Deceit Sanders, Thomas is mentioned - Freeform, let me know if I need to tag anything else, siren deceit, siren virgil, yes i titled it tail end for the pun
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-17
Updated: 2020-03-17
Packaged: 2021-02-28 19:46:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,551
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23182705
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesirensong/pseuds/thesirensong
Summary: Virgil makes some new discoveries, and learns more about his best friend.
Relationships: Anxiety | Virgil Sanders & Morality | Patton Sanders, Anxiety | Virgil Sanders/Deceit Sanders
Series: Siren Anxceit [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1663159
Comments: 4
Kudos: 165





	Tail End

**Author's Note:**

> I got _fanart_ for the first part of this series (that you can find right over here!!!) and it inspired a part two!!!!!!
> 
> I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it!

A tail.

He had a  _ tail _ .

“When you had said something new,” Virgil started, face scrunching up a little at how strange it was to talk beneath the water’s surface, “I wasn’t sure what you had meant, but I certainly wasn’t expecting this.”

Dee laughed, and Virgil knew he was laughing at him despite not looking away from the iridescent purple of the tail attached to his hips.

Moving it felt natural, as if he’d gone years with a tail rather than the two legs he was born with.

“I know, I figured when you didn’t recognize the color in your hair and the sealed gills on your torso as signs of a human shifted siren you had no idea of your birthright,” Dee said, gently pulling Virgil close to his chest.

Virgil blinked up at the siren, a little confused by his words.

“A human shifted siren? I wasn’t aware they could do that? And you don’t have color in your hair, how is that a sign of a siren?”

Dee grinned, and Virgil nearly startled at the  _ very  _ sharp teeth he’d never seen before. He swam back, watching as the siren’s appearance changed. Yellow faded into the long black locks of his hair, his tail shifted from the calming pale yellow Virgil was used to into a striped pattern of vivid yellow and deep black.

So focused on Dee’s tail, Virgil didn’t notice the rest of the shift until a long, black claw gently lifted his chin and his eyes met the pale milky pupils of Dee’s. The whites of his eyes were now black and his grin was unsettling with his gray skin. It was glowing, almost as if there were tiny fires under the surface.

“A deep sea siren,” Virgil murmured, his breath caught in his chest because it was certainly a terrifying sight but he couldn’t help but very much enjoy the way it looked.

A laugh rippled through the water and Virgil’s skin grew bumps at the way it sounded. Like a hollow echo of a water cave combined with the angry hisses of a cat who wanted to be left alone.

“In a way. I prefer the middle point between the surface and the deep,” Dee explained, the ghastly features fading back to what Virgil was used to seeing.

Before he could answer, or rather ask more questions, Virgil heard shouting above the water surface, distant and unintelligible. Curious, he flicked his tail and shot upwards, head breaking the surface to see Patton hanging over the side of the ship, looking down at them as he held his glasses to his face.

Virgil watched as Patton heaved a sigh and pulled back from the railing, appearing a moment later to gesture for him and Dee both to move around the ship. He turned to look at Dee, a little confused by Patton’s lack of reaction to him being in the water and the finned ears he could now feel with the air making the sensitive skin freeze.

Dee just shrugged and dived back under the water, apparently willing to follow Patton’s instruction to meet him on the other side. With a small sigh that felt almost weirder above the water than it did under, Virgil followed him. He wondered briefly what Patton wanted, especially considering he didn’t seem surprised by Virgil’s changes.

Which he hadn’t really gotten a good look at just yet. All he had seen was his tail, and it was beautiful, yes, but Virgil was sure his appearance had changed more than that. Notably the bizarre push on his torso when he breathed in water and his lack of drowning as a result and the thin webbing between his fingers.

Patton was leaning over a boat, the rigging ropes still attached to the iron loops embedded into the sides, when they got to the other side of the Mind Palace. Virgil only lifted his eyes above the water, Dee rolling his own as he heaved himself onto the edge of the boat the way he had when they first met.

“Pirate. Was there something you needed?”

Virgil watched as Patton hummed with interest and eyed Dee. He tensed when his friend reached towards the siren, picking up a lock of drenched black hair.

“It’s really neat that you can change your appearance. Is that just you or can other sirens do it too?” he asked, dropping Dee’s hair to look him in the eyes.

Dee was quiet for a moment, looking over his shoulder at Virgil who had risen a little more above the surface in his confusion.

“My father could do it too, but I haven’t met another siren who could shape shift their appearance outside of human shifting since his death, no.”

Patton frowned, but seemed to decide to drop the topic as he focused his attention on Virgil.

“Well, I was wondering when you were gonna figure out who you really were, kiddo,” he said softly, grinning sheepishly and leaning back when Virgil abruptly surged forward to grip at the boat, staring at Patton with wide and almost angry eyes.

“You knew?”

“Of course! I- Well…”

Patton sighed, then leaned towards Virgil and dipped his hand in the water, a sheen of blue scales showing in the moonlit water. The webbing between his fingers was shredded, where it was connected veiny and weak.

Virgil gasped, grabbing Patton’s hand out of the water and frowning when it looked human again. He looked at his friend, confusion turning to concern when he saw the acrid expression there.

“A  _ navy  _ man found me when I was weak,” he said, spitting the word navy like it was poison on his tongue, “he didn’t give me to the crown at first. Oh no, he thought he could take full advantage having a weak siren at his mercy. He made me sing for my life, wanted to see what his fatal flaw was.”

Dee inhaled sharply, staring at Patton with wide eyes and sympathy. Patton returned it with a bitter smile, pulling his hand from Virgil’s grasp and rubbing at his fingers gingerly.

“He wasn’t too happy I couldn’t do that. Wasn’t happy that my particular breed of siren wasn’t the singing type.”

Virgil frowned as Patton spoke, listening to him describe how he was held captive and his fins torn to shreds the longer he was imprisoned by the navy man. His heart ached for his friend, and he couldn’t help but heave himself inside the boat, awkwardly bending his tail as he pulled Patton to his chest.

“My sister, your mother, found me Virgil. She helped me escape that hell, brought me to Thomas and helped me recover enough to turn human. I can’t be a siren anymore, but I’m glad you can be, kiddo. I was planning on showing you myself, with you being born human you needed to be twenty-one and a shock needed to happen for the change, but it seems your siren lover over there beat me to it,” Patton said, giggling when Virgil flushed.

Dee snorted himself, watching the two in the boat with a soft expression. Virgil stuck his tongue out at him only to yelp when it scraped across his teeth that were much sharper than he remembered.

Patton and Dee both started laughing at him as he pressed his fingers inside his mouth, pulling them back to make sure there was no blood, glaring at both when he confirmed he was fine.

“I am  _ new  _ to this whole being a siren thing! I wasn’t expecting the fangs, so stop laughing!”

There was a splash as Dee laughed himself back into the water, Virgil pouting as Patton tried to control his giggles, pressing a soft kiss to the crown of his head.

“I’m sorry, V. It’s gonna take some time to get used to this change, and it will be a challenge to keep it from the crew, but Thomas will help you.”

Virgil went quiet for a moment, looking at his shining purple tail, the dark shade of wine the only constant with the shifting shimmer of his scales.

“Will I be able to shift back to human?” he asked quietly, running his fingers across his tail only to pick it up as he finally noticed the sharpened point of his nails.

Patton was quiet as he examined his new features, using one hand to stroke the webbing on his other and shuddering when it tickled the sensitive skin.

“Yes, just not… not right away. You’ll need to spend time in each form to get your body used to the shifting, but the time spent between each change will shorten until you’ll be able to do it just as easily as you’re able to throw a dagger.”

Virgil looked up at Patton then looked at the edge of the boat when Dee lifted himself back up with a lingering grin.

He supposed… being a siren with his friend (or uncle? Apparently?) and his… lover? By his side it wouldn’t be so bad. Virgil knew he didn’t want to abandon Thomas or his crew, they were basically his family at this point, but perhaps he could use being a siren to his advantage as a pirate, once he figured out how to  _ be  _ a siren.


End file.
